Be Experience Led

I believe that a company’s journey to becoming product-led by focusing on showcasing product value to attract customers, does not capture the full spectrum of a customer’s journey. A customer’s experience begins long before they start using an application; it starts with their very first interaction with the company. This interaction could be through a marketing email, an advertisement, or visiting the company website. Similarly, a customer’s experience doesn’t end when they close their account. There’s always an opportunity to win them back, so their post-churn experience should also be positive.

This holistic approach is what I describe as being experience-led. It’s the philosophy I embody and aim to impart to others. Being experience-led doesn’t mean that UX drives every initiative. Instead, it signifies that ensuring a positive customer experience at every touchpoint is everyone’s responsibility. Imagine selling experiences, not just products. This emphasis on customer experience is a core value I look for in a company.

Here are my six tenets for successfully being experience-led:

1. Everyone is Responsible for the Experience
   Every team member plays a role in shaping the customer experience.
2. Understand Our Customers
   Deep customer insights enable us to address the right problems.
3. Use Data to Inform Decisions
   Data-informed decisions lead to better customer outcomes.
4. Focus on Behavior-Based Outcomes
   Understanding customer behavior helps us tailor experiences that drive desired outcomes.
5. Sell Experiences, Not Products
   Prioritize the customer experience over just selling a product.
6. Make Every Experience Delightful
   Aim to create delightful interactions at every touchpoint.

My Leadership Style

I describe my leadership style as servant leadership. My success stems from empowering my team and colleagues, removing any roadblocks to their success. I listen attentively in meetings and speak only after gathering enough information to add value to the conversation. Effective leadership, in my view, is built on trust and respect, not authority.

I instill a growth mindset, believing that anyone can improve their skills with focus and drive. Rather than providing answers, I ask questions to encourage critical thinking and problem-solving. I avoid micromanagement, trusting adults to interact, collaborate, and even disagree respectfully while still delivering on expectations.

A healthy work-life balance is essential for everyone. I believe people need time to recharge, and I actively encourage taking that time to ensure well-being and sustained productivity.

My Approach to UX

The great thing about being in UX is the abundance of process frameworks to choose from. If an existing framework doesn’t quite fit, someone often tweaks it and publishes a new version. The downside, however, is the overwhelming number of processes and frameworks available, with new ones constantly emerging. To make matters more complex, you don’t always follow every step of a given process-what you do depends on the outcome you’re aiming for and the task you’re tackling.

In meetings, I used to chuckle when the answer to how something worked was invariably “it depends.” Now, as someone who frequently describes the UX process to various stakeholders, I find myself giving the same answer. It’s not to be evasive but to acknowledge that it genuinely depends on factors like the task, its complexity, and pre-existing knowledge. The key is to align your process with the desired outcome at that moment.

My design approach generally aligns with either the double-diamond or design thinking frameworks. Both share a thematic similarity: starting with understanding user needs and pain points, conducting research, determining success metrics, and ensuring a correct interpretation of the opportunity space. This is followed by brainstorming, solutioning, and user testing to ensure the solution meets both user and business needs before deployment. Ideally, the later stages are iterative, but that’s not always feasible when creating new features or products with multiple moving parts that users need to complete their tasks successfully.

One phase often overlooked or minimized is post-launch. How are we gathering feedback? How are we monitoring KPIs or UX metrics to ensure success? While I advocate for UX throughout the entire process, I emphasize the importance of a robust post-launch evaluation. A complete user feedback loop is essential for informing design decisions, guiding company direction, and shaping product strategy.